Barnhill - New Dawn

Thursday, 29 June 2017

Downing Street has moved to stress that the 1% cap on
public sector salary increases will not be scrapped, despite suggestions from
Tory ministers to the contrary. A Labour attempt to scrap the wage cap was
defeated in Parliament on Wednesday, but earlier in the day Defence Secretary
Sir Michael Fallon said the Government should consider pay rises “right across
the public sector”, and Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said ministers would
“have to think through” changes to spending plans. An unnamed Conservative
source had also indicated that a review of the cap would be made at the next
Budget, but No10 issued a statement before the Parliamentary vote that “the
Government policy has not changed.”The
Times,

Theresa May has confirmed the cladding on Grenfell
Tower did not comply with building regulations, as she promised a root and
branch review of building safety. Addressing MPs during PMQs, Mrs May also
announced that 120 tower blocks in 37 local authority areas had now failed fire
safety tests. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the disaster should be a "wake up
call" and blamed failures in tower block safety on Tory council cuts. “When you
cut local authority expenditure by 40% you end up with fewer building control
inspectors. When you cut local authority budgets by 40% we all pay a price in
public safety," he said.

It has also been revealed that retired Court of Appeal
judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick has been chosen to lead the public inquiry into the
Grenfell Tower fire.with courtesy of "The Guardian",

Theresa May has ordered a “major national investigation”
into the use of potentially flammable cladding on high-rise towers after every
piece of cladding so far tested for fire resistance in the wake of the Grenfell
Tower tragedy has failed to meet the necessary standard.

Tuesday, 18 April 2017

A new cycle taxi service is launching in Hackney next week to help older people and those with mobility issues make short trips by bike for free.

The new ‘Ride Side by Side’ service is run by Cycle Training UK with funding from Hackney Council, TfL and the Department for Transport. Described as ‘unique’, the service is designed to help residents who use Dial-a-Ride to attend appointments, go shopping or visit friends.

The four wheeled taxi bikes are custom-made and allow the ‘trainer’ and passenger to sit side-by-side. Passengers can choose whether they want to join in and pedal, or sit back and enjoy the ride.

78-year-old George Capon, who recently trialed the new service on a shopping run (pictured below), said: “I think it’s an excellent idea. I hope it’ll catch on for lots of older people. It’ll give people that little bit of exercise and would be lovely to do in the summer months.”

Tuesday, 28 March 2017

According to an annual report by the Asphalt Industry
Alliance (AIA), 17% of local and rural roads are in drastic need of maintenance
for potholes or risk full resurfacing or closure in the next five years. The
survey based on responses from 63% of councils in England and Wales reported
that local authorities would require £12bn in funding to clear a maintenance
backlog. The number of potholes filled by councils in England last year fell by
19%, with London recording the biggest decline of 43%. Edmund King, president of
the AA, said: “The government needs to confront the funding shortfall head on
and help to fund repairs and resurfacing work quicker.”

Monday, 13 March 2017

10 March 2017

PLANS to make Brent safer are set to get the go-ahead next week, as Brent Council's Cabinet are asked back improvements to CCTV in the borough and a new proposal to curb street drinking.The council's Cabinet will on Monday evening (March 13) be asked to back a report recommending the spending of around £2m on an overhaul of CCTV in the borough, which notes increasing operational costs of maintaining a 20-year-old system described in the report as "archaic" and requiring "an upgrade."Instead, it is suggested that the council switch to a wireless CCTV system, which would allow for a more cost-efficient and flexible CCTV network, and enable the easy relocation of cameras to crime hotspot areas as required, without the need to hard-wire a camera in.The proposed move to upgrade the borough's CCTV network comes as Brent was this week (March, 9) recognised by the Home Office's Surveillance Camera Commissioner for its work on CCTV, becoming one of only a handful of boroughs in London to be audited and certificated for following the twelve guiding principles, set out in the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice.Brent's Cabinet will also on Monday evening consider a proposal to better combat street drinking.Even though the whole of the borough of Brent has been a controlled drinking zone since 2007, anti-social behaviour linked to prohibited street is still an issue in areas including Harlesden, Kilburn, Ealing Road, Neasden, Wembley Park and Sudbury.In response, it is proposed that the Council introduces Public Spaces Protection Orders in these areas for six months to tackle the issue - a breach of which will be a criminal offence and carry a fine of up to £1,000.Cllr Tom Miller, Brent Council's Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, said:"Our proposals to improve our CCTV and tackle alcohol-related anti-social behaviour follow the recent work we have we been doing in getting more police on our streets, in tackling crime linked to rogue shisha outlets and underlines our commitment in making Brent safer."The investment in CCTV would not only replace a dated twentieth century system, but will mean we'll get a state-of-the-art, more flexible and cost-efficient system that ensures we can maintain a network that helps to keep residents safe."We are also considering measures to introduce Public Spaces Protection Orders for street drinking, demonstrating that while we will always help those vulnerable people battling addiction, we will always take a zero tolerance approach towards anti-social behaviour."

Saturday, 11 March 2017

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan believes cars should be
banned from roads near schools to reduce air pollution, calling on boroughs to
follow the examples set by Camden and the City of
London. He commented: “Forty or fifty years ago we thought smoking was
bad and yet our forebears took no action. We know air quality is a killer, it
makes you sick and no action has been taken. It's a health
emergency.”

Saturday, 4 March 2017

A 500Ib World War II bomb, which was discovered in Brondesbury Park yesterday (March 2), has been safely removed by bomb disposal experts, the army has confirmed.
The huge device was removed safely this evening (March 3) and hundreds of affected residents are returning to their homes within the 300 metre exclusion zone.
War is evil and I dislike them but for the same of own country there is no alternative but to stand up!

Thursday, 2 March 2017

These are shown on plans below , we are going to have Purple Plum for historical context, a new Oak for Midholm Green and other varieties of Cherry as illustrated, wild Prunus avuim for wildlife benefits and some cultivated pink flowered types.We are also going to have Birch on the hill and Turkish Hazel for yellow autumn colour.

Please see the location below.( I sorry for the quality of plan I will try to re-do it soon)

Saturday, 18 February 2017

Cllr Sarah Marquis,Cllr Pavy
and myself are complaining about ever increasing population of Pigeon and Gulls
in Chalkhill especially around ASDA. We are not only one, there are lot others.
A Freedom of Information request has revealed that
the amount spent by local authorities on ridding streets of pigeons and gulls
has more than doubled in the past three years. The two-thirds of councils in
England that provided information spent £452,000 on the problem in 2013-2014,
and £830,000 in 2015-2016. Methods used by councils include spikes to
discourage landing, hawks, and even marksmen to shoot the birds

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has confirmed plans to
press ahead with a £10 “T-charge” for older, more polluting cars wishing to
enter central London from October. Around 10m vehicles are expected to be
affected by the levy, which will be imposed alongside the congestion charge
Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm. He said the move is necessary to protect people’s
health, particularly children who are at increased risk of reduced lung function
in adulthood if they live in highly polluted areas

Friday, 17 February 2017

Please
find attached here a letter in relation to the application by Tottenham Hotspur
to use Wembley for their home fixtures next season. The consultation
involves approximately 41,000 properties, any comments / queries from Elected
Members can be directed to Chris Heather, Principal Planning Officer – North
Area Team, chris.heather@brent.gov.uk.

The
consultation period is beginning now and letters for residents are to be
delivered this week.

During
this period, until the application is heard, Members are advised not to accept
any gifts or hospitality, such as tickets, for an events from the
Stadium.

People
who live or work in Brent are being asked to have their say on how £3 million –
money collected from developers under the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) -
could be spent in their area. Please see flyer attached here.

On
13 February 2017, Brent Council’s Cabinet approved a process to manage the
allocation of these funds, and following consultation, spending priorities for
each local area (or CIL Neighbourhood) will be set for the next three
years.

The
Consultation will be open from 15 February 2017 to 30 March 2017.Members are
being asked to encourage their constituents to take part in the
consultation.

The
November Cabinet made the decision to consult on whether to bring BHP back in
house.
Information
on the consultation can be viewed at www.brent.gov.uk/housingreview. This Council
meeting will discuss the outputs from that consultation in order to
thatCabinet
can make a decision on 24 April.

Thursday, 16 February 2017

Tree
Barnhill Resident Association and local councillor met Council Officers for planting 60 to 80 various type of trees in Barnhill. Barnhill Resident's chair Mr John Wood and myself have been pressing upon this nearly two years.Roads Resurfacing
I am happy to say resurfacing of Alverstone Road has now been completed. I have already requested putting Wykeham Hill and Wentworth Hill into next year programme. Will continue pressing council.

Pocket Park at Chalkhill

Chalkhill Park Maintenance is very poor and uncleanliness cannot be described . Wrote to the Park Department. After inspection of the site I have been informed that Annual scheduled maintenance will be carried out during the month of February including removal of natural die back, thinning of root stock and replanting and replacing of dead or deceased plants. Sadly I have been informed that Spring, summer, Autumn and Winter annual Bedding plants such as Wallflowers Pansy's, Pollyanna's Germanium's Marigolds etc are no longer planted in Brent Parks and have been replaced with Herbaceous Perennials.

Rubbish Bins

The Avenue-Rubbish Bin lying around on footpaths and on grass verges have again been reported. Veolia will send officers to educate local residents yet again. Will come back on this.

Saturday, 4 February 2017

The Parliament Street think-tank has called for
greater investment in mental health services after figures emerged showing
police in England and Northern Ireland handled almost 240,000 incidents
involving people with mental health issues during 2016. A Government
spokesperson said: "We're investing £30m in providing more alternative places of
safety, have more than halved the number of people detained under a mental
health section in a police cell in the last year and are entirely banning the
use of police stations for this purpose for under 18s."BBC
News

Labour shadow housing minister John Healey has
urged the Government to remove the cap on borrowing by councils in order to
allow them to raise money against their existing housing stock to pay for new
social housing. He estimated that the proposal could pave the way for 60,000 new
council homes over five years, lowering rents and cutting housing benefit
bills.Independent i, Page: 6

Thursday, 26 January 2017

The Grammar School Heads
Association has warned that grammar schools will soon need to ask parents for
voluntary donations of between £30 and £40 each month in order to make up budget
shortfalls caused by incoming changes to funding. The Government’s funding
formula reforms will leave some schools better off but others will lose hundreds
of thousands of pounds. Those to suffer cuts are expected to make the request of
pupils’ parents in order to ensure teaching standards do not fall.The
Times Daily Telegraph The Guardian

Tuesday, 17 January 2017

With the apprenticeship levybeginning this year, there will be more investment in apprenticeships from May 2017. Our Brent Works service already provides fantastic opportunities for local young people, and will continue to do throughout the year. See thecurrent vacanciesand encourage young people to sign up to ourmailing list, so they are the first to know about upcoming opportunities.

Friday, 13 January 2017

Brent Libraries have been successful in
receiving a grant of £30K from the Arts Council in a joined up partnership bid
with 12 other London Library Services and Apples and Snakes ( an Arts Bridge
organisation). Brent was the lead library service and wrote the bid jointly with
Apples and Snakes.

The funding will support the delivery
of the SPINE Festival now in its 3rd year. SPINE Festival is an innovative
celebration of arts and literature for children, young people and families. The
ambition is for SPINE Festival to become a recognised brand with a strong
emphasis on inclusion. The Festival runs annually February to March. The funds
will pay for two ‘artists in residents’ to provide workshops for children and
families in Wembley Library.

Below is official report on current weather forecast and measures taken by the Brent Officers.

Council officers check the weather forecast
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and have been doing so since the Winter Service
commenced on 1 November.

With all 5 of our gritters fully serviced,
more than 326 grit bins on the streets and filled with salt, and over 800 tonnes
of salt in stock, the council is ready for any cold snaps.

On yesterday’s (12/1/2016) operation,
all of the priority routes were treated from 10am due to a forecast of snow in the
afternoon, grit bins were refilled, sweepers (with re-deployed parks staff)
spread salt in town centres, outside transport hubs (train and tube), and in
cemeteries where burials were taking place and also where needed and if
necessary. Full details of these can be found here.

Because of freezing temperatures from 22.00, gritting continued
overnight.

The Borough was checked from 5.30am and the roads were in good
condition - clear Tarmac showing on roads, no settling of snow from yesterday,
and the gritting had stopped widespread ice formation.

On the latest 5 day information from our
bespoke Brent forecaster, no snow is forecast but temperatures are expected to
be below freezing on Friday night into Saturday and Saturday night into Sunday and, if there is
no change in the forecast, we will be gritting.

The gritters are loaded and ready to deal
with any sudden change in the weather.

Tuesday, 27 December 2016

Annual
Report – Barnhill Ward

31 December 2016

After going through more than
10,000 emails both directions, I feel it is important to let Labour Party
members know in brief what have been achieved and fought for on their behalf in
the Barnhill Ward during the year 2016.

Perhaps it will not wise to
mention individuals names who have expressed sincerely their gratitude and admiration the
positive work being carried out which has changed Barn hill ward beyond recognition. This is being achieved because
of hard working, unrelenting efforts and continuous push by councilor to bring
the issue in the forefront in council.

Last year variety of cases and
issues brought to the attention of the council such as in housing issue
/repairs, housing provision for young and old, housing benefits issues, school
admissions, flying tipping, rubbish collection and removal, raising issues
about roads and foot paths , grass not being cut, safety, Planning . Seeking
help for environment issues in the area and working with police regarding Anti
Social behavior, issues with local ASDA store, planning applications so on and
on. So please read this report it is for your read and digest.

Aim and Achievements,

My aim remains representing
Barnhill Ward community and draw attention to the variety of issues to the Brent
council and those who are involved in decision making process. Also get
involved in decision making process and contribute for the good governance/ wellbeing
of the area. Take part in activities and encouraged local community
participation. Most importantly respond as quickly as possible to issues/enquiries
and represent Brent/ Barn Hill Residents moderately, without prejudice and decisively
whoever and wherever.

Chalk hill Park

Turned waste and derelict land,
used to be used rubbish dumping into a park now called Chalk hill Park at Chalk
hill Road. This is most visible achievement in the area. No doubt, this little
beautiful park especially exercise section, has perhaps become the most popular
and visited area Barnhill Ward since its opening to the public on 4 May 2013.
The opening ceremony was participated and attended by many hundreds local
residents. Because of non existence annual fanfare Events and importantly
venue, this Park is now being used as venue for Chalk Hill Park original
opening ceremony legacy under “LOVE CHALK HILL” an Event now has become annual
events for Chalk hill, a wildly popular event being held on 16 May 2016 with massive
success. This community day has support from Chalk hill Trust Fund as well. How
nice it will be if this Event is adopted by Chalk hill Trust Fund for annual
staging.

Brent "BMX" Track –First and only

Another first and only new Park was created in the
Brent with left over money from Chalk hill Park is Brent firsthand only
BMX bicycle track which opened 2013also behind St.Davis Close along with football
kick about ground, which is being used cycles enthusiastic.

New Road Signs/Lighting

Numbers of old conventional roads
signs have now been replaced either with new electronics or conventional signs.
LED street lightings are being introduced from next year.

Employment.

Help/encourage local employers
especially ASDA, to give preference when employing to local residents and
youths. Brent is London Living Wages Borough which 9.40 per hrs. All local
employers are asked to employ local residents. Brent has also help and
encourages training courses to help improve job skills.

Traffic Management.

New Traffic management
arrangement initiated with the help of the council, TFL, local Barnhill
Residents association throughout the ward especially traffic on Bridge
Road/Forty Avenue/Paddock. The choices by the Transport Department were 2 and
represented to the local community for their views which was rejected and new
Transport Department is now rethinking their options regarding traffic on
Bridge Road/Forty Avenue/Forty Lane and Barnhill. Any new proposal will be
reported to you.

Police Presence and Level.

Level of police presence was
reduced dramatically during last few years but 2016 was worst, resulting crime
of the ward started to climb up and up. Continuous pressure excreted upon
authorities by the local councilors, especially Barnhill councilors and as a
result police presence hopefully will go up soon. The total number of police
officers will go back to 5. Definitely this will improve law and order
situation in the ward positive way and towards the correct direction.

ASB

Tackling anti social behavior is
key priority for Chalk Hall due to diversity of environment. In Barnhill ward
with help of CCTV, police and other means, crime reductions have become our
first priority this year. There were unfortunate homicides cases. Police is
active in the area so we are. I have attended some meeting s organized by Prevent. Police is fully aware of Gangs and we have
discussed this SNT Safer Neighborhood meeting. My aim is to steer away youth
from crime and help police curbing Anti Social Behavior

Infrastructure Repair.

Authorities in the council are
fully well aware of up-to-date situation about state of affairs of all roads,
footpaths and verges, in the ward. The councilors are also very keen to provide
such information to the transport authorities. A named road list and footpaths
need repair or resurfacing regularly being prepared annually by each councilor
and send to Transport Department who then set the priority of repair Brent
wise. Last year Brendon Gardens, Crossways and Barn rise were resurfaced on my initiative
this year name of Alverstone road, Wentworth road and Wykeham Hill name has
been forwarded besides others.

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.

You may have read in the press
that Wembley Stadium has agreed that Tottenham Hotspur football Club may use
Wembley Stadium while Tottenham’s own ground is being re-developed. In 2016-17
(August 2016 to May 2017) Tottenham will play their Champion League games at
Wembley and these will be classified as Events Day. I do not have to remind
that originally Wembley Stadium planning allows 37 Event days each year. There are
currently 26 Events day arranged for the stadium for this year. So this leave three
Games fall within this year allotted figures. Next season 2017-19 Tottenham are
holding all their home games at the Wembley which could total up to 28
depending Tottenham progress in the competitions. Obviously this will increase
Events Days during 2017-18. I have attended few meetings with Wembley Stadium,
Council Officers and Tottenham management team. The residents views and
possible difficulties were conveyed to both council as well as Wembley Stadium
Authority regarding Parking, ASB, Rubbish and traffic arrangements.

Others Issues.

It is pleasure to say that Local
Resident Associations are now using councillors for speedy resolution of their
members’ issues with council. This is so big turned around which was not
considered easy task few years ago due to multi nature of the residence ship. I
am glad councilors efforts have now started giving positive results.

For example Group
representing residents of Chalk hill House,, are having problem with
ASDA, regarding noise, seagulls, late or off hours work, human shouting, flood
lights, I am glad to say councilors pursued
this with such a vigor hopefully
result will be good.

Problems emerged from TFL,
embankment work at the jubilee line has now resolved after number of meetings
with TFL and residents as well as council.

Rough sleepers, a huge problems
and issues at Fryent Park have an early come under control. Police and others
Agencies use their resources to get rid of this problem. Veolia picked up day
after day, time and time again weekly/daily loads of rubbish and households
goods after dismantling huts and sheds which used to spring up every day on
various locations in the Park. Dog poisoning was handled so swiftly surprises
all of us. Lewd pictures display in the Fryent Park